What Charm Impact does

Charm Impact Ltd. is a UK-incorporated (Borehamwood, England) impact investment firm founded in 2018 that operates a digital lending marketplace connecting retail and institutional investors with early-stage clean energy and clean cooking businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa. The company's core product is the Charm Impact Lending Platform, a website-based marketplace where investors purchase fixed-denomination Loan Notes (e.g., £250) that fund individual Impact Entrepreneurs; investments are processed through Lemon Way, a regulated European payment institution. Charm supplements its loan products with proprietary Strategic Diagnostics tools, a structured 12-week borrower assessment process, and bespoke consultancy services aimed at aligning financing with each borrower's growth trajectory.

Charm's primary revenue stream is a one-time platform fee of 4% per 12 months over the project duration, charged to Impact Entrepreneurs on the total funds raised through each campaign. The company previously deployed $5.4 million across more than 40 loans in eight African markets on an ad hoc basis. In April 2026 it formalised this activity by launching Hummingbird One, a dedicated early-stage clean energy debt fund with a $6.25 million first close (targeting $12 million total), backed by Oikocredit, Dutch Good Growth Fund, IKEA Foundation, and Good Energies Foundation. Loans range from $50,000 to $500,000 — below typical institutional investor ticket sizes — and the fund currently focuses on Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and Zambia.

Charm Impact is a small, founder-led team of approximately five named professionals (Founder & CEO Gavriel Landau, CIO Lorraine Vuguza Indangasi, Portfolio Officer Irene Ndolo, and Senior Investment Officers Samuel Njuguna and Jessica Kagisye), based across the UK and Africa. The company is privately held, with no parent or subsidiaries, and operates as a specialist impact debt provider rather than a technology company — its competitive position rests on domain expertise, LP relationships, and access to borrowers through partnerships with foundations and development finance institutions.

Name

Charm Impact

Legal name

Charm Impact Ltd.

Website

https://charmimpact.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Charm Impact operates a digital lending marketplace that channels investor capital into early-stage clean energy and clean cooking businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa, providing $50,000–$500,000 loans below typical institutional ticket sizes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Impact Lending / Clean Energy Debt Financing

NAICS

Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231), Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310), Activities Related to Credit Intermediation (5223)

SIC

Loan Brokers (6163)

akta.pro primary industry

Impact Investing & Social Finance (Funds, CDFIs, Microfinance) (BPAGALAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Impact / ESG Venture Capital (FSANAAAG), Impact Investment & Development Investment Funds (BPADACAO), Impact Investment & Social Finance Programs (BPADAOAJ)

Keywords

• Impact lending platform
• Clean energy finance
• Peer-to-business lending
• Debt financing Africa
• Renewable energy investment

Headquarters

HQ city

Borehamwood

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Platform Fee from Impact Entrepreneurs: Charm Impact collects a one-time fee from Impact Entrepreneurs that is added to their loan and raised via the crowd. This fee is generally set at 4% per 12 months over the project duration, of the total amount of funds raised for the Campaign through the website, paid when the Impact Entrepreneur receives the funds after an offer completes.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Charm Impact operates a digital lending marketplace that provides peer-to-business debt financing to underserved early-stage renewable energy and clean cooking entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa. The platform enables investors to purchase Loan Notes that fund individual Impact Entrepreneurs, with loan sizes ranging from $50,000 to $500,000, and is anchored by the Hummingbird One impact debt fund. Charm Impact collects a 4% platform fee from borrowers per 12 months of project duration and offers a structured 12-week assessment plus proprietary diagnostics and bespoke consultancy as part of the financing relationship.

Product overview

Charm Impact operates a unified lending marketplace platform that connects underserved clean energy entrepreneurs across Sub-Saharan Africa with investors. The core offering is the Charm Impact Lending Platform, which enables investment through loan notes with fixed amounts (e.g., £250) bearing interest rates set per campaign. This platform is supported by the Hummingbird One Fund, an impact-focused debt fund that provides flexible loans ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 to early-stage renewable energy and clean cooking businesses. The platform also offers supplementary services including Flexible Debt Financing (tailored debt financing options following a 12-week assessment), Strategic Diagnostics (proprietary tools for business challenges and growth opportunities), and Bespoke Consultancy Services (advisory on fund management and capital deployment).

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Charm Impact Lending Platform A digital marketplace platform connecting underserved clean energy entrepreneurs in Sub-Saharan Africa with investors, enabling loan-based investments through fixed-denomination Loan Notes bearing campaign-set interest. It facilitates the full investment lifecycle from borrower application through loan disbursement and repayment management, supported by Lemon Way digital wallet infrastructure.
• Hummingbird One Fund An impact-focused debt fund that provides flexible loans of $50,000 to $500,000 to early-stage renewable energy and clean cooking businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Zambia) that fall below typical institutional investor ticket sizes. Formalizes Charm Impact's prior $5.4M track record across 40+ loans in 8 African markets.
• Flexible Debt Financing for Clean Energy Businesses Tailored debt financing ranging from $50,000 to $500,000 designed for clean energy and clean cooking businesses in Sub-Saharan Africa, delivered through a structured 12-week assessment that aligns capital with the borrower's growth stage and lays the groundwork for an ongoing relationship.

Quantifiable outcome

• $5.4 million deployed across 40+ loans in 8 African markets
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• CLASPminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed among Charm Impact's partners on About page. CLASP supports clean energy access programs globally.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Kiva: US-based non-profit P2P lending platform enabling crowdfunded $0-$15K loans to underserved entrepreneurs globally. Comparable marketplace mechanics, though Kiva operates at much smaller ticket sizes and focuses on consumer microfinance rather than SMEs.
• Energise Africa: UK-based P2P platform specifically focused on solar and clean energy projects in Sub-Saharan Africa. Direct competitor in the same niche - retail investors funding African clean energy SMEs via crowdfunded bonds - making it the most head-to-head comparable peer.
• Lendahand: Amsterdam-based P2P lending platform connecting retail investors with impact entrepreneurs in emerging markets. Closest direct peer to Charm Impact: similar crowdfunded loan-note structure, similar emerging-market focus, similar ~3-5% platform fee model.

Broad incumbents

• Acumen: Global impact investment fund backing early-stage clean energy, agriculture, and health ventures across East Africa and South Asia. Similar early-stage, patient-capital approach to underserved entrepreneurs; though Acumen uses equity/grant blend rather than Charm's pure debt model.
• responsAbility Investments: Swiss impact asset manager providing debt and equity financing to financial inclusion, clean energy, and food security SMEs in emerging markets. Comparable impact-investing mandate and Africa exposure, with substantially larger AUM and broader product set.
• Oikocredit: Global cooperative providing debt and equity financing to financial inclusion, agriculture, and renewable energy organisations in emerging markets. Functions as both a backer of Charm Impact and a much larger incumbent offering similar products at higher ticket sizes.
• Triodos Investment Management: European impact investment manager running multiple funds across renewable energy, financial inclusion, and emerging markets. Comparable impact mandate and institutional LP base; substantially larger scale and broader geographic remit.

Regional players

• BBOXX: UK-headquartered solar energy provider operating across Sub-Saharan Africa with paygo financing. Comparable clean energy / Africa footprint and consumer-credit underwriting expertise; not a marketplace, so direct competition is limited but thematic adjacency is strong.
• M-KOPA: Kenya-headquartered pay-as-you-go solar provider serving off-grid East African households. While M-KOPA operates further down-market (consumer paygo) than Charm's SME focus, both share Kenya-based clean energy lending expertise and overlapping customer geographies.

Emerging players

• Alitheia Capital: Pan-African gender-lens investment manager providing growth capital to SMEs across Africa. Comparable mission-driven Africa focus and impact thesis, with some overlap on female-founded clean energy companies that Charm also targets.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/charm-impact

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Charm Impact